Pre-Kindergarten Curriculum

The Pre-Kindergarten program is designed to acclimate students to Le Jardin both socially and academically. Learning is experiential. Students, during open periods, are free to choose from a variety of learning centers with exciting, appropriate materials. Large and small group activities are also an important part of our curriculum.

Language Arts - Focus is placed on students enjoying literature and developing speech through finger plays and chant games.  The first 26 single phonograms of the Spalding Method are introduced both visually and orally. Students are encouraged to listen for beginning, medial and ending sounds in familiar works and in their names.  Oral reading and story telling promote language awareness.  The writing and art centers as well as the library extend exposure to the written word.

Math - Students learn numerals 1-12 through manipulation, songs and games. One-to-one correspondence, association numbers with sets and counting are incorporated into daily hands-on projects. Other concepts including size, pattern, measurement, geometric shapes and graphing and presented throughout the year.

Social Studies Science Social studies and science are integrated in the curriculum through themes, which teach students about their world. A unit on transportation leads to safety shapes, traffic and personal safety, and culminates with a trip to a fire station. Prior to Thanksgiving, students learn about their bodies, nutrition and hygiene with an excursion to the hospital. This leads to talking about feelings and family celebration. In January, the students learn mapping by replicating their homes and building a town. A visit to Chinatown for Chinese New Year continues that unit and leads in to a unit on jobs. Moving out into the world, the children study animal life and their habitats. A Trip to the aquarium gives them field experience. Earth and space science culminate their studies for the year, along with a visit to the Bishop Museum.